Beef Bourguignon is a great dish, exemplifying the refined nature of French cooking, while at the same time reaching out to the hearts of those of us that simply love a good stew. This time of year, when the weather takes a turn for the worst I am always looking for a dish that will warm me up inside, a dish that will represent the “C” in comfort and that dish is Beef Bourguignon.

One of the things that I find fascinating is that so many people seem to think French food is hard to cook. *Aucune façon que je dis! In all of my cooking classes over the years I have found a strong resistance to learning French food, and most if it is people have already made up their minds that it is too difficult for them to do. I have, and will say again that if you go into any recipe with an open mind, then anything is possible.

Beef Bourguignon is a simple yet complex dish of beef, red wine, pearl onions, mushrooms, carrots, hearty beef stock, garlic & some fresh herbs all slow roasted until the beef is fork tender and the flavors have matured. Served with either egg noodles (like the image above) or with plain boiled potatoes this dish is sure to take the chill off those cold winter nights.

So now your sold on it and want to make this dish for yourself, there are a couple of things that you should remember.

• Red wine - use only what your willing to drink but don’t sell the house for a bottle either.
• Mushrooms - Crimini’s work best. Chanterelles make an interesting substitution when available.
• Beef - Organic feed and a free range makes for a more tender chunk of beef.
• Salt - Season this dish only after is has completely cooked. Doing so before hand and you risk serving a salt lick to your dinner guest(s).
• Consistency of the dish. If you cook this dish and the sauce is not thick, just reduce it down a bit over a flame until the thickening occurs. it usually takes a couple of minutes to thicken if it did not do so in your oven.

Want to give it a try? Good, here is what you’ll need to get started.

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I have been on the island of Kauai for the better part of 4 days now, some well deserved rest in between my usually hectic schedule. I spend the day yesterday with my sister wandering around some old heiau’s, photographing some waterfalls and eating in downtown Kapaa.

Kapaa is a great little town on the (only) road from Lihue to the North Shore towns of Princeville and Hanalei. After days of eating at the house, I was in serious need of some noodles. We stopped by the House of Noodles and I had some of the best noodles I have had on Kauai.

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